


The Other Side of the Street

by puszysty



Category: Popslash
Genre: Bodyswap, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-12-25
Updated: 2008-12-25
Packaged: 2017-10-08 13:59:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/76342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/puszysty/pseuds/puszysty
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Written for nopsued for MTYG 2008</p>
    </blockquote>





	The Other Side of the Street

**Author's Note:**

> Written for nopsued for MTYG 2008

It started when Kevin woke up in bed with a woman. A woman who was not Kristin. His immediate reaction was "Who the fuck are you?" This woman, whoever she was and whatever the hell she was doing there, was clearly not pleased.

"Excuse me? How drunk were you last night?"

Kevin scratched his head. "I don't remember--"

"Screaming my name last night? Fuck off, JC!"

The woman snatched up her clothes and stomped out of the room in a huff. Kevin, still lying on the bed, was sure that he hadn't picked up any strange women last night. In fact, when he'd fallen asleep, he'd been on the bus after finishing up a show somewhere. And why anyone would be calling him JC was beyond his comprehension.

Kevin stretched and glanced around the room. Whoever decorated had strange tastes. The bedspread was a zebra stripe pattern, and a large abstract painting hung from one of the walls, but the rest was for the most part bare. If this was a hotel, someone should've been fired for putting this room together. Kevin rolled out of bed and sauntered over to the bathroom. He suspected that maybe this wasn't a hotel, since there was a bathmat on the floor, a navy colored towel hanging over the shower door, and a toothbrush holder on the sink. He cautiously turned on the faucet to splash his face. He glanced up at the mirror to make sure he looked alright, which is when Kevin saw his reflection.

Kevin screamed.

 

JC woke up when an alarm went off. Strange, because he didn't remember setting an alarm. He also found the bed empty, which was weird because last night he'd hooked up with a hot mami named Marissa at the Red Velvet Room, and she'd promised him some wake up sex for this morning. JC rolled over to turn off the alarm, still perplexed as to why it was there in the first place. He hadn't even used an alarm in months. JC reached down to adjust himself and...whoa that did not feel like his. It was...nice, but it definitely wasn't his. JC, startled, rolled out of the bed, hitting the floor with a clunk.

"Kev, you okay in there?" someone yelled out. JC lay stunned on the floor.

"Kevin, hellooo?" JC saw the face of Brian Littrell over him, waving his hand in circles.

"What are you doing here?" JC asked, a little bit stunned as to why there were Backstreet Boys in his bedroom.

"Um, we share a bus together? I'm not that bad of a bunkmate am I?" Brian said. "And why are you lying on the floor?"

"Um..." JC pondered. "I fell. Off the bed. On the floor."

"Smooth. You better get up before we hit a bump or something. Wouldn't want you to hit the floor again."

JC sat up, dazed. He was probably still asleep, and this was all a dream. A shower would help. "Um, I'm gonna go shower," he told the Brian mirage. Luckily the bathroom was easy to find. The shower was tiny, like a bus shower, but JC chalked that up to sleep walking as well. The shower would appear bigger when he turned the water on. He hoped.

JC stripped off the clothes he'd been wearing, just a white t-shirt and boxers and nothing unrecognizable, and turned on the water. Stepping in, JC felt himself relax. Nothing was better than a hot shower in the morning. Well, maybe nothing except morning sex,but his chances of that looked shot to hell, so this was the next best thing. JC scrubbed himself with the washcloth he'd found, purposely avoiding _that area_ so that he wouldn't feel something that didn't belong there. It didn't bring him much comfort, since he kept feeling muscles that he didn't remember having. JC grabbed the shampoo, squirting some into his hand. He reached up to run it through his hair and found...stubble. His hair was short, but it wasn't that short. His head wasn't shaped well enough for a buzz cut. Unless someone had pulled a prank on him, except that everyone who had a key to his place was out of town. Something was wrong.

JC got dressed and walked out to the kitchen area of the bus, where Brian was waiting with a box of cereal. "Want some Fruit Loops?" he asked, shaking the box suggestively. JC snatched the box and poured it into a bowl on the table. _God, I'm apparently turning into Justin now._

"So," Brian said, eying JC expectantly. "Were you serious about what you said last night?"

"Um.." JC stalled. Whatever it was, it sounded important, but he hadn't the slightest idea what Brian might be talking about. Secret Backstreet stuff, probably.

"You dropped a bombshell on me last night, don't dodge it now."

"I'm sorry," JC apologized. "I just..hit my head kinda hard when I fell out of bed, I'm having a little trouble remembering things."

"You said this might be your last tour with us. You really thinking about leaving Kev?"

"I don't.." JC scrambled for words. Kevin was leaving the Backstreet Boys? Was the group breaking up? "Maybe we should talk when I'm feeling a little better. Do you have any Tylenol? I have a major headache."

 

Kevin couldn't believe his eyes. He was...he was...JC Chasez. He couldn't be JC Chasez, people just didn't randomly change bodies. And how was he supposed to fix this? He couldn't be JC, he was supposed to be in the middle of a tour. Of course if he was JC, that likely meant that JC was him and... Oh god, they were fucked. They had a show tomorrow, and JC didn't know any of the moves. Or his parts. Or stage settings. Or...

Kevin's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the phone ringing. There was no way he was picking up, since he probably didn't even know the person on the other end. He'd already pissed off one person in the mere 15 minutes he'd been awake, he didn't need to make it two. After five rings, the answering machine picked up.

"Hey Jace, it's Justin. Pick up, I know you're there. C'mon man, step away from the soundboard and pick up the damn phone. JaaaayyCeeeee, don't make me come there and kick your scrawny ass."

"Hello?" Kevin answered, picking up the phone. He at least knew Justin, if only vaguely, so he could probably fake a short conversation with him.

"There you are," Justin replied. "I knew you were home, not like you've been up to much lately."

"Is that supposed to be an insult?" Kevin snapped, a little strung out from the morning so far.

"Whoa man chill out. Someone not get any sleep last night?"

"No, I slept, it's just..." Kevin figured that 'ended up in another person's body' wasn't something Justin would buy, so he tried to come up with something more believable. There was that girl this morning.. "I had someone over. You know."

"Oh man, you were about to get some? Why the hell would you pick up? Is she hot?"

"She left already."

"Ooh, ouch dude. Sucks to be you. Did it at least not suck last night? Cause if it did, that would, well, suck."

Kevin did not want to talk about this. Especially since _he_ hadn't been the one who got some last night. "Justin."

"Alright fine, I get it, you're not gonna kiss and tell. Or fuck and tell. Whichever. Listen, I was calling to see what you were up to. Are you free next week?"

Kevin figured things would be back to normal by next week. And since, according to Justin, JC wasn't doing anything lately, an affirmative answer should be ok. "Yea. I think so."

"Good, cause I wanna throw some song ideas around with you. Your place, Wednesday. I'll call you Tuesday night and let you know what time."

"Sounds good." Kevin found a pen and some paper and left a note for JC with the details of Justin's call. Now, before anyone else could throw him off guard, he needed to call the man occupying his body.

 

JC was startled by the sound of someone's cell phone ringing. He crossed his fingers that it was Brian's and he wouldn't have to fake a concussion to anyone else.

"Kevin, you gonna answer that?" Brian shouted from the back of the bus.

JC tentatively picked up the phone, hoping it wasn't something important. "Hello?"

"You have no idea how weird it is to hear the sound of your own voice pick up." It was himself. Well, more than likely it was Kevin, but it sounded like himself.

"I think I do now," JC replied. God this was weird.

"Is this really happening? I'm not imagining all this, am I?" Kevin asked.

"Only if I'm imagining it too."

"What the hell is going on here?" Kevin asked abruptly.

"How the hell am I supposed to know? You think I don't find this a little bit weird too? Last night I went to bed with this foxy mama, and today I wake up with Brian Littrell!" JC blurted in response.

"You were in bed with Brian?" Kevin asked, sounding a little more weirded out than before.

"I...what? No! I just meant...Whatever, you know what I meant. If I'd have woken up with Brian in my bed, I'd be a little concerned about your sanity, not mine." JC said. "And you two are cousins, ugh."

"You have a sick mind JC. I am tempted to just hang up right now," Kevin said.

"Well um...I suppose you could. I mean, I'm you, you're me, we just fake it for a while, right?" JC asked, scratching his head, but bringing his hand back down when he realized once again that he didn't have hair.

"I'm not hanging up, because you're on tour. And I don't want you to screw it up. Ask to see last night's tapes and memorize everything. Just say you want to critique it, and they won't question a thing. I do it all the time. There isn't a show tonight, just rehearsal, so that should buy you some time. If you mess up a show, so help me..." Kevin said, sounding a bit threatening. "Oh, and by the way," Kevin added, changing his tone. "I scheduled you to meet with Justin on Wednesday."

"You what? I...you know what, forget next week, I've just got to get through today. Shit, I'm in trouble. Let's hope things sort themselves out tomorrow."

"Here's hoping."

 

Brian wondered what was going on with Kevin. They didn't hit a bump, and Kevin was usually a pretty coordinated guy. Maybe he'd been tossing and turning just as much as Brian had after his confession about wanting to leave the group. He'd wanted to ask Kevin about it this morning, but Kevin seemed to be dodging.

Three hours later, and Brian was still suspicious. Kevin had asked to borrow the tape from last night's show and had gone to watch it, but Brian knew the tape wasn't _that_ long. Brian went to the TV room to see what was going on. He really hoped Kevin hadn't sustained a serious head injury earlier that morning.

Entering that section of the bus, Brian saw that Kevin was fine, but still acting a little strangely. Kevin was dancing along with the recording, in the half-dancing way that being on a bus necessitated. They'd all done it on occasion, as tours tended to ingrain the moves into one's brain, but usually they didn't mess up the moves when they did.

"Um, Kevin?" Brian asked. Kevin jumped, then stumbled over himself before turning around.

"Yes?" Kevin replied, with a strange look on his face that Brian didn't recognize.

"You seem rather..uncoordinated. Are you sure you didn't seriously hurt yourself this morning? We can always stop and have you looked at. Skip practice tonight."

"No!" Kevin said abruptly, startling Brian a bit. "No. I'm fine. I should really go to practice tonight. You know, make sure we look good for tomorrow."

"Ok. But if you start feeling dizzy or anything, let me know," replied Brian. He left Kevin to his dancing, not feeling any better than he had before interrupting.

As the bus pulled in to the hotel, Brian was thankful that they didn't have any interviews today. The European press was acute this tour, and they'd definitely notice something was a little off with Kevin. There would be no hiding it from the other guys. At least not without avoiding them altogether. Which would never happen.

Howie caught Brian as he was getting into the elevator. "Hey," Howie said, "I'm coming to your bus after tomorrow."

"I dunno man, Kevin's been kinda weird lately," Brian replied. He wasn't sure how he'd explain it to Howie.

"Kevin's always weird," said Howie.

"Well. Not weird like this. Out of the ordinary weird."

"What's up?"

"Not sure. He's just...acting strange," was the best Brian could come up with.

"Well, AJ and Nick are acting like AJ and Nick, so I'm joining your bus no matter how weird Kevin is."

"Porn?" Brian asked.

"Yup," replied Howie, not missing a blink.

"Well, hopefully Kevin is back to his usual self tomorrow. Goodness knows how long those two will be on a porn kick."

 

Kevin went rummaging through JC's cupboards for something for breakfast. He thankfully found a box of cinnamon Pop-Tarts, for the rest of the cupboard was otherwise bare, barring a jar of peanut butter, a few bags of popcorn, and a box of macaroni and cheese. The fridge was similarly empty; a half empty jug of milk, a jar of jelly, a six pack of beer, and some cheese. What the hell did this guy eat? Kevin was definitely going to the store this afternoon, even if he didn't intend to be here long. JC would thank him later.

 

Howie had wondered if maybe Brian was the one who was being weird today and not Kevin. Brian had the tendency to worry over things that were nothing really. Today could have easily been one of those times.

Howie knew it was definitely Kevin though, when they got into rehearsal. He was missing steps left and right. And something sounded off in their harmonies. He couldn't pinpoint it exactly, but...

"Kevin," AJ turned and said, stopping in the middle of More Than That. "Is there a reason you're trying to sing an octave up?"

So that's what it was. No wonder they sounded funny. "I don't get many solos as it is, and you're trying to steal my parts, Kev?" Howie joked.

"Yea man," Nick laughed along with Howie. "You know he's too old for Menudo." Howie punched Nick on the arm. Nick grabbed Howie and gave him a noogie.

"I um. Sorry. I guess I just. Yea. I didn't mean to take your parts. Sorry," Kevin mumbled.

"I was just joking Kev," Howie replied. "You ok?" Kevin always knew when they were joking. And usually spoke in complete sentences. Brian was right. Kevin was being not-normal weird.

The next run through sounded a bit hazy, as Howie heard Kevin adjusting his vocals throughout the song. The group decided to break on the ballads for Kevin's sake and run through something up-tempo instead. They skipped ahead to The One and casually ran through the choreography and vocals together. Howie watched Kevin out of the corner of his eye. He seemed to be a little hesitant in his moves, like he was out of practice, but was at least following along ok. It was like what they all looked like when tour rehearsals first began. Had they not just performed a sold out show the night before, Howie would've thought nothing of it.

Howie also caught that glint in Nick's eye that said 'I'm about to do something mischievous'. "Nick," he said before Nick turned off, "what are you up to?"

"Just making Kevin more relaxed," Nick grinned.

Howie watched as Nick crept up on Kevin, then leapt onto his back. He jumped when Kevin screamed.

"Jesus! Are you trying to break me in half?" Kevin yelled, more startled than angry.

"I'm sorry man, I was just trying to get you to ease up a little," said Nick. He looked hurt.

"Go pick on someone your own size Nick," Howie kidded, trying to make Nick feel better. He knew Nick wouldn't hurt anyone on purpose. It wasn't his fault that Kevin wasn't in a joking mood today.

"Kevin is my own size," Nick responded, sticking his tongue out at Howie.

"Fine, go pick on Brian. He deserves it the most," Howie replied.

"I think I'm gonna pick on you instead," Nick said, right before charging for Howie. Howie took off running towards backstage. Rehearsal wasn't much productive after that.

 

Kevin woke up the next morning in the same bed that he had the day before. Same bare walls, same zebra stripe comforter. That meant he was still JC. Damn. And that JC was still him. Double damn. At least he'd gotten food the day before; now he wouldn't starve on account of JC's empty cupboards.

Kevin had just stepped out of the shower when the phone rang. "JC must not need an alarm clock," Kevin thought. He decided to answer the phone, in case JC...Kevin...JC was calling.

"Hello?"

"Look who finally got himself out of the house." Not JC.

"What are you talking about?" Kevin asked the guy who he suspected to be Lance Bass. There hadn't been any award shows or major movie premieres lately, and he certainly didn't go to any big events last night. He wondered if Lance had just called him by accident.

"Your grocery store trip. Page 15 of the National Enquirer has a picture of you and a box of Cheez-its in full color."

Lance was calling him because he went grocery shopping. He didn't know whether to think JC was a loser or to feel sorry for the guy. Perhaps both. "The National Enquirer? Why would they care if I went grocery shopping? And why were you reading the National Enquirer anyway? You know that magazine is nothing but crap."

"Of course it is. That's why I like it. I need something to laugh at every now and then. Besides, what are you worried about? What could possibly be incriminating about Cheez-its?" Lance chuckled.

"JC Chasez gets the munchies," Kevin mused. Kevin always went for Cheez-its when he got the munchies. He probably should've gone for the rice cakes instead, they were healthier...

"When you get the munchies, you call for pizza. Hell, you call for pizza even when you don't have the munchies. But seriously Jace, it's nice to see you out and about again. You can't mope forever." Lance's voice turned serious.

Kevin wasn't sure what to say. What was JC moping about? It sure didn't seem like the guy had been moping two days ago, judging from yesterday morning.

Lance didn't let him think too long. "You finally getting over her?"

Ah. Kevin didn't follow the lives of 'N Sync much, but he did know about the breakup of JC and Eva Longoria. Hard to avoid it. To Kevin's knowledge, that had been months ago; they must've been close if JC was still moping now. Two nights ago must have been rebound sex. Poor guy. Breakups sucked.

"Jace? You still there?"

"Uh, yea," Kevin replied.

"If you ever need to talk, you know I'm here, ok?"

"Yeah. Yeah, um, I think I'm finally getting over it," Kevin said. He hoped that was true. Otherwise he was setting JC up for a whole lot that he wasn't prepared for.

"Good. I'll talk to you later Jace," Lance said, before hanging up the phone.

"Bye," replied Kevin.

"So tomorrow..will it be Chris or Joey?" he thought.

 

Lance hung up the phone, and looked at the Inquirer page again. He was really glad JC was getting out, he really was, But he could've sworn JC hated Cheez-its. None of them liked Cheez-its. In fact, the only time he'd ever seen anyone crave Cheez-its was when he got high that one time at Nick Carter's house. Lance shrugged it off; it probably didn't mean anything anyway.

 

JC was awoken by a loud pounding on the door. "Yo!" It was AJ. "We've got a press conference, Johnny will kill us if we're late!"

Press conference? Oh God. JC sucked at press conferences. And that was in his own band.

JC staggered out of the room, after throwing on whatever clothes he could find that relatively matched. Apparently Kevin wore a lot of black; that made it easy.

"So um...press conference?" JC asked tentatively, shutting the door behind him. He wanted to make it sound like it'd only just slipped his mind.

"For going gold here in Europe. Same old spiel as usual, we just get a plaque this time," AJ shrugged. Apparently he sounded believable enough.

"You don't think they'll ask any original questions?" JC asked.

"Do they ever?" sneered AJ. "We just say how proud we are of the album, the tour's going great, yes we're enjoying Europe, and no we never broke up. Sorry man, these things get so old after a while, I hate having to get up early for one." AJ paused. "You think we should just throw something random out there? If it'd make it more interesting, I'm all for it."

"Well, um. I'm not.." 'Not sure what I could say,' was what JC was thinking. "Up to being random. Right now," was what came out instead.

"You're really out of it aren't you Kev?" AJ said, throwing an arm over JC's shoulder. "Don't worry, you'll get to see Kristin tomorrow. I'm sure she'll help clear your mind."

Kristin? Kevin's wife Kristin? It was hard enough pretending to be a Backstreet Boy, and now he had to pretend to be married? Fuck, he needed to call Kevin. ASAP.

 

It was a short ride to the press conference. There were a lot of people with flash bulb cameras and notepads standing around and murmuring in German to each other. JC suspected they were all just local press, except for the guys speaking English off to one side, who he recognized as being from a magazine in the UK. They'd given him favorable reviews on Schizophrenic, and took it as a good sign that these two were here. The guys all sat at the table that had been set up for them, and JC sat in the chair marked "Kevin" with masking tape on the back. Brian was to his left, and AJ on his right.

The reporters asked a few general questions. Pretty much exactly what AJ had predicted. "Tell us about your album." "How's the tour going?" AJ was fiddling with his pen, clearly anxious to be doing something else. JC smiled knowingly; press conferences always bored him too.

Then the guys from the UK decided they wanted to hear 'Kevin' talk. "Kevin," they said, getting JC's rather unwanted attention. "What's it been like having reunited with the guys? Are things the same as they were between you as before you broke up?"

JC cleared his throat. He could handle this one. "We never broke up. We were just on hiatus for while."

All four guys turned to look at JC. 'Shit,' JC thought. 'Bad choice of words.' After three years, the term had become synonymous with 'N Sync.

The guys turned their attention back to the reporters. AJ spoke up. "We took a short break. We've always been the Backstreet Boys, even when we weren't on tour together." JC owed him one. Hiatus, what the hell was he thinking?

 

After the conference, JC made it a point to call Kevin. The arena crew was setting up for sound check, and JC decided to find a remote corner to talk privately. Kevin picked up after two rings.

"Why did you not tell me your wife was coming?" JC blurted into the phone.

"Whoa, calm down JC," Kevin replied, a little startled.

"Calm down? I'm supposed to pretend to be married! To _your wife_! I don't know the first thing about being married, dude!"

"Just do whatever she says. That's usually what I do," Kevin replied nonchalantly.

"Kevin, I'm serious."

"Call your friend Joey. He will tell you the exact same thing." JC sighed. Kevin better be right, or else the guy was going to have a lot of explaining to do to his wife later. "Are you really still not over your ex?" Kevin continued.

"I...I don't want to talk about it. Girls...you know how it is. Are you really leaving the Backstreet Boys?" JC tried to change the subject.

"I...I don't want to talk about it," Kevin replied.

JC sighed again. He really needed to know, if Brian was going to ask him again. "She cheated on me. For months. I found out when she did an interview where she professed her love for some basketball player. So no, I'm not over it."

"Sorry man." Kevin was silent for a moment. "I'm just getting tired of touring, I need a break. A real break, not like last time. The business, it wears you out. And I'd like to raise my kid and not have him only see me two weeks a year, you know?"

"Yea. So you're leaving...permanently then?"

"No. Just for a little while. Couple years maybe."

JC shook his head at the phone. He'd heard something like that before. "You'd be surprised how quickly a little while turns into something a lot longer."

 

JC was really nervous about the concert that night. According to the schedule posted backstage, there were only a couple of shows left in the European leg of the tour, and JC didn't want to disappoint all the fans that had come out to see the group. Especially if it was the last time they'd see the entire group together. He hated giving a less than stellar show, and the fact that he was standing in someone else's shoes, quite literally, made the pressure even greater. JC had hoped that last night's rehearsal would help him iron out the parts he was really screwing up on, but after Nick and Howie started running around the stage, the opportunity for serious rehearsal was pretty well shot. Not that JC wasn't used to it; there wasn't ever an 'N Sync rehearsal where someone started goofing off eventually. He might've mourned the loss of productivity, but he didn't really mind the interaction. Actually, it was really the only time JC'd felt comfortable since finding himself here.

Backstage he was restless, stretching, jumping up and down, and generally expending energy that he really should be conserving. Various stage staff were walking by staring. Kevin must usually be a calm guy. Nick walked by just then, slapping JC on the back. "Five minutes. Let's go pray," he said. JC had felt like he'd never hear those words.

JC linked hands with Nick and Brian, before AJ started them on a group prayer. "Heavenly father, we ask you to bless this show tonight..."

The word "amen" came sooner than JC was expecting. The butterflies were growing in his stomach as he could hear the roar of the crowd begin to rise. "You ready for this Kev?" Nick shouted while loosening himself up. The guys were ushered up the back of the scaffolding to the top of the awaiting staircase. The music began pulsing in JC's earpiece, only slightly blocking out the all too familiar sounds of screams. 'Don't be nervous,' JC thought. 'Just go out and give them a show.' JC took a deep breath and looked down towards the stairs. The glowing lights from under them reminded him of their Gone set, and the anticipation and screaming added to the sense that he'd been here before. Then the signal came in his ear: "3,2, and Go."

JC marched down the stairs to the opening notes of The Call. The guys hit their spots at the waiting microphones all at once, and stopped, looking for a crowd response. The rise in the pitch of 20,000 people was the signal. JC began singing and moving through the first few steps of choreography. Then the guys broke, and JC began watching the other guys for cues on what to do. "Just go with the flow," is what their body language said. AJ was leaning into the crowd singing his verse with Nick leaning into his ear for the harmony. Brian was clutching his mic in intensity, and Howie was pointing out to the crowd. JC started hopping up and down with the energy the crowd was giving him. He hit the next move with a rush. He felt the music move through him, no longer worrying about what might go wrong, and suddenly he remembered just how much fun being up on stage was.

JC had locked himself away for months when he could've been doing this? He vowed to himself, when he changed back, it was time to piece together the scraps of lyrics lying around his house and lay down some tracks for a new album. It was time for JC to get back to performing again.

 

Kevin was awakened the next morning by the sound of the phone ringing. "Dear lord, not again," he muttered. "Why don't JC's friends ever call in the afternoon?"

He rolled out of the bed and picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"Hey Jace. Lance tells me you've actually left your house." It was Joey. Chris must be calling tomorrow.

"It's really not that big a deal. I went grocery shopping." If people called at...7:30 in the morning every time JC went somewhere, Kevin understood why the guy never left his house.

"For you, that is a big deal. Seriously, we've all been worried about you man," said Joey.

"Yea, that's what Lance said too," Kevin replied in a raspy voice.

"Did I wake you up?" Joey asked.

"Yes."

"Score! My four year old woke me up at 5:30 this morning, someone else ought to get an unwanted wake up call."

"I know how that goes," replied Kevin. He couldn't count the number of times he'd been woken up, much earlier than 5:30 even, by Morgan. Gotta love your kids, but sometimes, love really ought to wait until the sun's up.

"Dude, you must really be up early. You don't know how that goes. Usually you're coherent enough to remember that you uh, don't have children. At least last I checked. You're not trying to tell me something are you Jace? Please tell me you don't have kids. I don't know if the world could handle two of you."

Ah shit. He couldn't believe he let that slip. "No. No, Joey, I don't have kids. I'm just not coherent this early in the morning."

"Yea, I know. I think we figured that one out a long time ago. And I also know that you're probably going to go back to sleep as soon as I hang up."

"Probably," Kevin replied. That was close.

"Bye Jace. Don't make me call you again."

"Bye." Trying to be someone else you knew little about was tough. And that was only for the few minutes of the day that people called JC's house. He couldn't imagine how tough JC had it right now, living in his place, nearly the entire span of the day.

 

"I'm bored," said Howie. He was sprawled on the couch, while Brian sat at the dining table booth, and Kevin was leaning against the refrigerator door. It was a 13 hour ride from Nuremberg to Barcelona, and Brian had already tired of all the movies they had in their bus collection. A day off was nice, but not when you were trapped in a 50 foot space with nothing to do.

"Yea, me too," Brian agreed. "You got any ideas Kev?" he asked, casually glancing up at Kevin. Kevin still didn't seem quite like himself, but he looked a lot more relaxed today than he had a couple days ago.

"Not really. Unless we've got any good games lying around." Kevin shrugged.

"We've got Uno," said Howie.

"Sounds fun. Something better than standing around," said Kevin. "Get it out."

"No way, Howie cheats at Uno," Brian replied.

"Do not," retorted Howie.

"How the hell do you cheat at Uno?" Kevin asked.

"Whatever, let's play. Anyone else hungry too?" Brian said, getting up from his spot at the booth to grab a box from the cupboards above him.

Howie dealt out the cards, Brian eyeing him carefully to make sure he wasn't slipping extra cards into everyone else's hand. Brian placed the box of Cheez-its on the table, digging his hand in for a bunch.

"Oh sweet, Cheez-its!" Howie grabbed the box off the table and dug in as well. "You want some Cheez-its Kevin?"

"I hate Cheez-its," Kevin said.

Brian had judged wrong. Kevin was definitely still weird in a not normal way. Normal Kevin would never turn down Cheez-its, even if he'd just eaten a full meal. "Since when?" Brian exclaimed. "You were the one who had these brought over here from America. Are you alright Kevin?"

Kevin didn't say anything. Brian and Howie stared at him in anticipation. Something was wrong, it had to be. Brian started to get a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Um. Just kidding," Kevin said, though it sounded more tentative than it should have. It was enough for Brian to hear, for the moment at least. Brian exhaled the breath he didn't know he was holding. Kevin had him more on edge the past few days than he realized. Was he really that worried over a box of snack crackers?

Howie passed Kevin the box. Kevin took out only a few, giving a weird smile as he did so. 'Stop worrying,' Brian thought to himself. 'It's nothing, it's just Cheez-its. He's probably not very hungry. Quit thinking about it and play the game.'

Brian picked up his hand. He looked at his cards, then at the card lying on the table. Perfect. "Draw two Howie."

 

Surprisingly, Chris didn't call to wake Kevin up on his fourth morning in JC's house. Chris probably realized that it wasn't such a big deal. Kevin was sure Chris knew about it at least, the way Joey and Lance were quick about things. Chris also probably had the good sense to wait until a decent hour to make phone calls.

Kevin really wasn't sure if going out was the best idea, so he decided to explore JC's house instead. As eclectic and flamboyant as JC's closet was (it took half an hour for Kevin to find something normal to wear), Kevin expected the house to be dashed with color and odd wall hangings. The decorating was instead rather sparse, a table here, a sofa there, and a couple of impressionist paintings on the wall. There was a home theater, which looked like the most lived in place in the whole house, being the first room Kevin had seen that was not pristinely clean. Kevin couldn't imagine being holed up here for months like JC had been; not unless the dry cleanliness was the maid's doing.

When Kevin made his way to the basement, he finally realized where JC had been spending all his time. A fully functioning studio had been set up in JC's basement, complete with soundboard, microphone, guitars, electric drum set, and a keyboard. Papers and notebooks were strewn everywhere, bits of songs scattered about JC's floor. He'd heard JC was a bit of a studio rat, now he supposed it was true.

Usually home studios weren't much, just a place to lay down ideas, but this one was far beyond that. It had the marks of someone with a true creative bug, an itch to make music as it came to him. Kevin couldn't resist sitting down at the controls. Something about it drew him in. He ran his fingers over the various knobs and switches, mentally reciting what each one did. Then Kevin's eyes turned to the keyboard. He'd been on tour for so long, he hadn't had the chance to sit down at a piano and let something flow.

Kevin moved from the chair and walked over to the keyboard, careful not to disturb any of the papers lying around. He switched on the keyboard and sat at the bench, letting his fingers rest on the keys. Kevin let out a deep breath, and allowed his fingers to move wherever they felt. A melody Kevin wasn't sure he recognized sprung from the keyboard. Kevin knew at that moment, that this would not be a part of what he would leave behind to be with his family. He was like JC, in a way. The music flowed through him.

Kevin smiled. Perhaps things weren't so different after all, on the other end of the great boyband divide.

 

"Hey honey," said Kristin, bursting through the hotel doors in Barcelona and planting a kiss on JC's lips. JC knew this was coming. He'd been mentally preparing himself for the last 3 days for her arrival. He'd grilled Brian about how things were going with Leighanne, until he was sure Brian wished he would move to AJ and Nick's bus. Of course, Brian had in turn asked about Kevin's marriage; questions which JC tried to deflect or at least give undetailed answers like "You know, the usual." Howie had taken to giving him weird looks when it appeared like he didn't want to talk about 'his' wife. JC distracted both of them by instituting numerous games of Uno. He might actually have stopped Howie from cheating by the time they'd played enough.

All the answers he'd got from Brian and telling himself that he'd be fine over and over still weren't enough to prepare him for her actually being there. It was one thing thinking about, it was a whole other to be kissed by another man's wife, she believing it was her husband. It certainly didn't help that he wasn't entirely fond of women right now.

"It's uh, it's good to see you. I've got a press conference to get to right now though, I'll see you later. Um, ok?" It was the truth at least. Nothing like a busy schedule to deflect awkward situations.

"I will. And we're not the only ones in town right now, so I'm dragging you out tonight. I hope the boys don't mind."

Crowds. Good. "Sounds great. I haven't been out in a while." Also the truth, thankfully. JC rushed off before he could think much more about it. He wouldn't be able to deflect her forever, but he could at least let the tour schedule work for him now.

 

"You almost ready to go?" JC asked, after having changed from the night's concert. He was hoping to cut down his and Kristin's private time, so things would be less likely to get awkward.

"Yea, almost," Kristin replied. "I'm just not sure whether I should go for the black purse, or the blue one. I know it's silly, but I want to look nice out with you and...it's really not much use asking you, is it?"

"Take the black one," JC suggested. "It matches your outfit better." Blue never seemed to go much with anything anyway.

"Um, thanks. When did you become a fashion expert on me?" she asked. It sounded more like she was flirting than being suspicious. Good, but still slightly awkward.

"Must be Europe rubbing off on me I guess," JC replied, hoping that sounded flirty enough. He felt slightly guilty about it, but he was sure Kevin would understand.

 

"So uh, your wife and I went out last night," JC said.

"Yea, I saw this morning on the internet," Kevin replied, as he munched on the slowly emptying box of Cheez-its from his infamous shopping trip.

"You're internet-stalking me?" JC asked.

"I'm keeping up with you guys just in case something that you guys did comes up in conversation. It's not stalking. How'd it go?"

"Not as awkward as it could have been. She got kinda flirty with me after I suggested which purse she should bring," JC said nonchalantly.

"You offered my wife purse advice?" Kevin asked suspiciously.

"Yeah. I mean, well, I figure since you've worn skirts and all, that it wouldn't make a difference..."

"It's not the same."

"But-" JC started.

"Trust me. It's not."

There was a long pause from both of them.

"We can't keep doing this forever," Kevin said.

"Agreed," JC replied.

"There's got to be something we can do, right? These things don't just happen. You haven't been hanging around any witch doctors lately have you?"

"I haven't been hanging around anyone lately, cat. Oh! What if..what if we have do something for each other, like something important?!"

"Do something for each other?"

"Yea, you know, like that show, with the dude from Star Trek."

"William Shatner?" Kevin asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No no no, not him, the guy from Enterprise," JC explained.

"Sorry, JC, I don't watch Star Trek."

"Seriously? You should man. Classic television. Anyway, so like, this guy-"

"Star Trek guy?"

"Yea, him. He was on this other show where he like, went back in the past into other people's bodies and had to change somebody's life so he could leave. What if it's like that? You help me out, I help you out, then we both change back."

"Can't hurt I guess. What are you thinking we have to help each other with?"

JC paused for a moment. "It's got to be something big. I mean like, maybe I'm supposed to tell your group that I- that you're leaving."

"I scheduled you to record with Justin on Wednesday. Maybe that's what I have to do for you."

"Has to be. Justin and I haven't recorded together since... Since. Well."

Kevin knew what JC meant. He could tell by the disappointment in his voice. "He'll want to do it more than once, I'm sure. You'll get to record with him as you after we switch back."

"I hope. Thanks."

"You're welcome. And good luck. I'm almost glad it's you and not me who has to break the news."

 

Justin arrived Wednesday morning as promised. Kevin was a little worried about what Justin was expecting to write. He'd heard both Justin's and JC's solo albums, and they sounded nothing alike. Unless they were writing for a newly reunited 'N Sync, Kevin had no idea how their styles would blend. Or how he was supposed to make them blend.

"Hey JC," Justin said as he came through the door, proceeding to give Kevin a man hug. "You ready to get it the studio? I mean, I know it's been a little while..."

"Yeah, I'm ready. And um, no worries. Not like we haven't recorded together before," Kevin replied. Justin hadn't sounded that tentative on the phone last week. It must have been a while since they had seen each other in person. It wouldn't entirely surprise Kevin. But Kevin was determined not to let this become awkward. For his sake, for Justin's sake, and for JC's. "C'mon, studio's in the basement. You'll have to forgive my mess."

Justin shook his head. "I've seen your studio, man. Unless you've turned an animal loose down there, it can't be any worse than I've already seen."

Kevin led Justin to the basement studio. Justin didn't say anything else on the way down. Kevin wondered if the awkward silence was just because of him, or because of something that had happened between JC and Justin earlier.

The tension was cut when Kevin opened the door. "Oh yeah, I've seen worse," Justin laughed. Justin pulled a tape out of his pocket that was marked 'JC beats'. "I saw the lyrics for your song. You were saying that weren't sure what kind of music it should have, so I made a couple beat tracks. Just background stuff. Let me know what you like and we can start from there. That uh, that sound good?"

"Lyrics? Oh, yeah. I'm just...not sure I can find them in this mess," Kevin replied, looking around for something that stuck out. JC hadn't mentioned that he'd already given Justin lyrics.

"Thought you'd say that. That's why I printed them off," Justin said, producing a printed copy of an email. Kevin read through the page to see what JC had written. It wasn't a full song just yet, just a series of lines that JC had noted should be included somewhere. Justin had written on the page as well, but the only thing Kevin could decipher were the arrows directing lyrics to be moved around. It was a good thing that JC had typed his portion; if JC's handwriting was as bad as Justin's he would've had to make something else up entirely.

Justin put the tape into the tape deck. The sound coming from the speaker sounded like a typical drum and base rhythm. So did the second track. And the third. Kevin thought that JC would've been tired of techntronic backbeats by now, after being stuck with it by their record companies in the early days. Kevin looked at the lyric sheet again. This song was way too bitter for techno.

"I'm really not feeling any of these," Kevin said. It might be JC's song, but he didn't want it to suck. "Not the right mood."

"You said you were thinking up-tempo," Justin replied.

"Yeah, just not that kind of up-tempo." Kevin eyed the keyboard. That's what the song needed. Kevin moved from the panel, across the sea of paper, to the bench at the keyboard. He flipped on the switch and played a quick scale to warm up. "Read me some of the lyrics again," he instructed Justin.

"Can you help me understand why you would keep me while you're sexing with another man," Justin read. "That good or you want me to keep going?"

"Nah, that's good. So this girl, she's creeping around right? What about having a creeping baseline?" Kevin played a slow descending progression on the keyboard. It sounded sort of like something to accompany sneaking in an old gumshoe film.

"Yeah man, I like that! How about a guitar or something on the off beats? Give it a little extra emphasis," Justin said. He picked up the electric guitar JC had leaning against the wall and plugged it in to a nearby amp. "Play it again."

Kevin played the baseline again. Justin strummed a note on the off beats, adding the emphasis Justin suggested it would. This fit so much better than anything techtronic, letting the music tell the same story the lyrics did. They'd be sure to add some riffs and melodies as it flowed.

"You think we should lay this down?" Justin asked excitedly.

"Yeah. Let's tinker around with the music a little more, figure out where to add in some drums. I like where this is going. We can play around with the lyrics some other day."

Justin smiled a toothy smile. "I don't know why we didn't do this sooner Jace. I'd forgotten how much fun it was getting in the studio with you."

 

It took JC until the boys arrived back in America to work up the courage to tell them Kevin was leaving. He spent the entire duration of the flight home trying to think of the best way to deliver the news. He knew how hard it was to hear something like that. He'd been on the receiving end of it. Twice.

He'd called an unofficial band meeting before the guys broke away from each other for the after-tour Thanksgiving holiday break. It was his last opportunity until the AMAs ten days away, and JC didn't wish to stay as Kevin for that long. Especially since he'd be expected to spend those ten days alone with Kristin. That scared him far more than a serious conversation with the Backstreet Boys did.

They met at Nick's house, since he was the only one who had someone stock food for him before he came home. Nick had already dumped one, maybe two, boxes of Cheez-its into a bowl before their arrival. JC scowled. What was it with these guys and Cheez-its?

JC sat down on the couch and began wringing his hands. Brian looked at him with a knowing look in his eye. The others were attacking the Cheez-its and trying to toss them into each other's mouths.

"I'm leaving the group," JC blurted. So much for all the building up he had planned to do. The look on Brian's face didn't change much. The other three froze immediately, AJ dropping the Cheez-it from his hand. The shock was evident on their faces.

"You're leaving? After all we've been through as a group?" Nick said, a sense of urgency coming through.

JC took a deep breath and tried to recall exactly what Kevin had told him. "Not forever. I just need a break. A real break, not like last time. And I want my kid to see me more than two weeks a year, you know?" There, that sounded fairly familiar. Everyone in the room went silent.

AJ spoke up first. "Hey Kev, if you're doing this for your family, we understand. They're important to you. We know this business isn't everything."

Brian reached out to put his arm around JC. "And you're always welcome to come back, anytime."

"We'll miss you Kev," said Howie. Brian moved first, followed by the rest of the guys, to embrace JC in a group hug. That hadn't been what he was expecting. He was expecting some yelling, some disappointment, maybe even some tears. He hadn't expected hugging. He had hardly even said anything. Yet they understood. He'd sensed that these guys were tight while on tour, but now he realized just how close they all were. JC wondered why he'd waited so long to have this conversation. By this time tomorrow, JC believed everything would be back to normal.

JC woke up the next day next to a woman. He felt a little confused; had he dreamed the entire last two weeks? Kevin didn't seem like the type of guy who would use someone else's body to cheat on his wife, so they couldn't have just swapped back. Maybe it was still November 3rd. JC rolled out of bed to go check the calendar. He caught a better look at the woman next to him in the bed as he did. It was Kristin. He was still Kevin. It hadn't worked.

JC crept out of the room, avoiding waking Kristin. He needed a plan B. And this time, it required more than a phone call.

 

Kevin heard a knock on the door. Lucky for him, he'd gotten up early this morning and didn't need to crawl out of bed to answer it. He set his cup of coffee on the counter and went to open it.

Kevin screamed when he saw who had been knocking. "Ahhh!"

"Jesus man, it's just me!"

Kevin clutched his chest, recovering from the shock of seeing himself standing at the doorframe. "Dear god, I thought it was freaky to hear you on the phone. Why didn't you call first JC?"

"It didn't work," JC stated.

"What didn't work?" Kevin asked.

"I told them. They hugged me. It didn't work."

"I'm still you and you're still me. Guess your Star Trek idea wasn't as good as it sounded," Kevin sighed.

"Now what do we do?" JC asked.

"Well, we tried psychological. What about something physical?" Kevin suggested. It sounded idiotic after he said it, considering they were standing in the same room and nothing was happening. But maybe it gave JC an idea.

JC leaned forward and hugged him. Kevin tentatively put his arms around JC to hug him back. This felt like an even dumber idea. JC stepped back and Kevin raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well, that didn't work either." JC shrugged. Kevin wondered how that hadn't just felt awkward to JC.

Kevin thought for a moment. There had to be something else they could do. Preferably something that didn't involve hugging JC again.

"Maybe we have to get more physical. Like, maybe we have to have sex with each other. Really get in touch with our own bodies," JC said.

Kevin raised both eyebrows now. "I am not having sex with you."

"It'd be just like masturbating."

"No." Kevin stated. No fucking way.

"Look, I'm all out of ideas cat. If you've got anything better, let's hear it."

"What if," Kevin started, not really knowing how to finish that sentence. They had to be missing something. Something they'd already done, but had left out a part. Something.. "What if it's both? Psychological and physical?"

"Now I'm just confused."

Kevin was on to something. This had to be it. "What if it's not me you have to get in touch physically with? I can tell your group isn't so close anymore; what if it's them?"

JC tilted his head, looking interested in Kevin's idea. "You think I need to have sex with my bandmates?"

"Something like that. We've tried everything else, haven't we?"

"This works both ways though, you know that right? You can't just have me hooking up with the guys and you like, standing and watching or whatever. You need to have sex with your group too."

"We'll all be in the same place, just to make sure. I don't want to mess anything up and be stuck as you forever."

JC sighed, like something was wrong with their plan. "It's going to take a long time to convince all four of those guys."

Kevin had just the plan. "We, well, you, have a couple radio concerts in early December. It'd be real easy get together at one of those. You think that's enough time?"

 

Kevin decided that Justin would be the first one to convince. He'd just seen the guy recently, so he figured it wouldn't be too hard. He'd lie if he had to. Who was going to believe him if he told the truth anyway?

"Hey uh Justin, I have an idea I wanted to run by you," Kevin said over the phone.

"This have to do with producing your song?" Justin asked.

"Yea sort of," said Kevin, fibbing to get Justin on board. "I wanted to get a feel for what other artists are doing, see if it gives me any ideas. Thought we might go check out a radio concert."

"You're out of your mind," replied Justin. "But. Jiving with you was really great. I want to see what you come up with next. I can't believe I'm saying this, but yea, I'll go with you."

One down, three to go.

 

Kevin debated between calling Lance or Joey next. If the two of them called each other about 'JC' going to the grocery store, word would surely travel fast about any strange idea he told one about. Kevin decided on Joey; he seemed more likely to accept something crazy.

"Hey Jace! What'cha calling for?" Joey answered the phone.

"I want to have an orgy." Kevin blurted. No sense beating around the bush. He'd just leave out all that information about inhabiting someone else's body.

"That's...nice. Orgies are fun. But really, I don't need to know about your sex life."

"With you guys. The group. I was thinking about the last time we saw each other, and just got me so..excited. I just felt this sexual energy that's been building up and.." If Joey didn't buy this, Kevin was screwed. It'd be hard to explain this one on lack of sleep.

"'N Sync group orgy? I wish you luck trying to get Justin to agree to that, but I'm down for it. I'm glad I wasn't the only one who felt some sexual tension at Challenge." He was agreeing to it? 'Wow,' thought Kevin, 'this is a lot easier than I thought it would be.'

"You're not..weirded out by this?" Kevin wanted to be sure he wasn't hearing things.

"I failed to be weirded out by anything you said a long time ago. And you know me, I'm always down for, new experiences, I guess you'd call it."

He really was going for this. Kevin knew he'd always liked Joey for a reason. "I was going to call Lance next..."

"I'll call Lance. If I can't talk him into it, no one can. I'll let you worry about the hard ones, Chris and Justin. Speaking of Chris, you're doing Thanksgiving with his family, aren't you?"

Shoot, Kevin had forgotten all about the upcoming holiday. He was going to have to fake being JC to the man's own family. But if Chris's family would be there as well, it should be a little easier. It would also save him from having to call Chris. There had to be a reason why Chris hadn't called yet, and Kevin didn't want to step over any boundaries that he didn't know about.

 

JC was in the car, listening to the GPS giving him instructions to Brian's house. JC had never been comfortable navigating country roads. Kristin had been bickering at him for the tenth time this week, about things Kevin would have known, but JC hadn't the slightest idea. He couldn't pass as Kevin for much longer; he needed to tell someone.

"I need to talk," JC said as Brian opened the door to greet him.

"I know. Kristin called, she said you needed to clear your head and thought you might be coming here," Brian replied. JC sulked. Having Kristin worry about him only made him feel more guilty than he already did for lying to her.

Brian ushered JC in. Baylee was playing in the living room, and Brian asked his wife if they would move upstairs so the two of them could talk.

"What's on your mind Kev? Having second thoughts about leaving?"

JC scratched the back of his neck. "No, it's not that. It's um..you might not believe me."

"Just try me. I've known you my whole life. I might be surprised, but I don't think there's anything I won't believe."

"I'm not really Kevin. I'm JC Chasez. Kevin- Kevin is living as me right now."

Brian stared at him. JC wasn't sure if Brian believed him or not. He stared back, waiting for Brian to say something.

"You're JC? Living in Kevin's body?" Brian asked. JC nodded. "It's been like this all month hasn't it?"

It sounded like Brian already knew. JC had thought he'd had everyone for the most part fooled, but maybe he'd been wrong.

"The forgetting dance steps, the singing out of key, even the Cheez-its. This all started when you told me you were leaving, didn't it?"

"Kevin told you he was leaving. You were just stuck with me the day after. And yea, I fucking hate Cheez-its. The singing, the dancing, I tried the best I could considering the circumstances. I'm sorry if I messed anything up for you guys, I really am. I really didn't want your last tour to be something I messed up."

Brian leaned forward and looked JC in the eye. "You don't have to apologize. I knew something was up, that you..that Kevin wasn't himself. I didn't imagine there was any supernatural explanation. But I suppose it makes more sense than anything I could come up with for why Kevin would change overnight."

JC smiled. Brian was a good guy. They all were. He might not belong as a part of the Backstreet Boys, but he hoped he could still be friends with them after he went back to his old life.

"Just, one question. You, telling the group you were leaving-"

"I just told you what Kevin told me. I know it's personal, but I, we, thought it would help to change us back. Helping out each other's lives."

"But you're still Kevin."

"We're planning a group orgy at one of your Christmas shows. I know it sounds weird but-" JC started.

Brian sat back, his eyes going wide. "Excuse me? You're planning a what?"

"It was Kevin's idea."

"That doesn't sound like my cousin. He's really not the type to-"

"Desperate times call for desperate measures. He thought that we had to connect with our groups both mentally and physically."

"Ah," said Brian. "Now that sounds more like Kevin. Look, usually I wouldn't be into that kind of thing, but if it's to help you guys out... Your group- 'N Sync- they're gonna be there too?"

JC smiled. "I'm kind of looking forward to it."

Brian laughed. "You're weird JC."

 

JC's parent's house was so overflowing with relatives and guests that no one had noticed that it might not be JC there with them. Kevin missed spending the holiday with his own family, but he wasn't too disappointed in being here instead. JC's and Chris' family made excellent food. Chris' mom's mashed potatoes were creamy and delicious, and JC's mom's apple pie was so good, it was almost sinful. He had two pieces before deciding he ought to leave some for everyone else.

Chris hadn't said much throughout dinner. Kevin had thought before coming here that maybe Chris was just upset with JC, but watching him interact with his family, Kevin knew there was another reason Chris hadn't called. After dinner, he caught Chris watching the football game, drinking beer and gazing with blank eyes at the television. He recognized that look; not in Chris, but he'd seen it before. Chris looked just like AJ did before he went into rehab. Empty.

"Are you ok?" Kevin asked. He didn't care who he was supposed to be right now, Chris needed a friend, JC or not.

"Boring game," Chris responded, not turning his head. Kevin looked at the TV. 35-31, Kevin certainly wouldn't call that a boring game.

"Chris," said Kevin. "I'm getting the guys together. Next week, in Atlanta. Radio show, the paparazzi won't care about anyone not on the stage that day. You should really come."

Chris turned to look at Kevin. Something flashed in his eyes that Kevin hadn't seen all day. "You're not messing with me are you? You're not planning some hostile stage takeover and you need me as a lookout?"

"No messing," said Kevin. "I've already got the rest of them to agree to it. Justin, well, he doesn't exactly know all of us will be there, but I don't think he's gonna turn and leave when he finds out. We're meeting with the guys from Backstreet too, might be less uncomfortable having someone else there."

Chris shifted like he was going to hug Kevin, but changed his mind. He gave Kevin a soft smile instead. "Thanks JC. I um. Yeah, thanks."

Kevin knew what Chris meant. He might not have endured the break up, but just talking to these guys in the last few weeks, Kevin could tell they missed each other more than they wanted to admit. From Lance and Joey calling about him going grocery shopping, to Justin wanting to be in the studio with JC yet still tentative about it, to the look in Chris' eyes that gave away his loneliness, he knew. Kevin hoped this would be the jump start they'd all been looking for.

"No problem, Chris."

 

December 7, the day had finally arrived. Brian had kindly explained to Kristin that Kevin was not really Kevin, so JC could stop pretending to be married, and JC had told the rest of the group, who were oddly not too shocked. JC wondered if weirder things had happened in the Backstreet camp, or if they were really just that intuitive. He'd have to ask Kevin later, when he wasn't so anxious for everyone else to arrive. Kevin had promised that he'd gotten all four 'N Sync members to agree to their plan, though he "may have left out a few details." JC wondered what Kevin meant by "a few".

JC heard a knock on the door, and went to answer it. It was Brian. "You still sure about this thing?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm still sure. My guys should be here soon," JC replied.

"Kevin's already waiting in the room with the guys. Chris is here too," said Brian. JC got up and followed him to AJ and Nick's room, which happened to be the largest. He saw Chris when he entered the room, looking better than he last remembered.

"Hey Kevin. Nice to see you again," said Chris. Apparently that was one of the details Kevin had omitted.

"I'm not actually-" JC started.

"Let's get this party started!" Joey exclaimed as he burst through the door, Lance not far behind.

"God, don't sound so excited about it. Freak," Lance said, smacking Joey upside the head.

"Chris! Hey, good to see you man. It's been a while." Joey enveloped Chris in a man hug, which Chris eagerly returned. Joey went to hug Kevin next. "You too JC."

There was a knock on the door, which JC figured to be Justin. At least he hoped. Kevin sprang to open it.

"So what time are we leaving for the-" Justin said as he walked in. "Show. You didn't mention anyone else coming with us." Kevin had left out a lot of details. JC had to hand it to the guy though, he had successfully gotten all of them in one room. Kevin was good.

JC couldn't decide if Justin was peeved or just surprised. Justin never did like surprises. "Hi. Everyone," he said, looking suspiciously around the room. He leaned over to Kevin and whispered, "Is there a reason you forgot to include this info?"

JC cleared his throat. "That's because he's not JC. I am. And uh...we need you to help us change back."

"Now I'm just confused," said Justin, now looking more dumbstruck than peeved.

"Wait, so this orgy I came prepared for?" asked Joey.

"Part of the plan," JC shrugged.

"Orgy?" exclaimed Chris. "No one said anything to me about an orgy!" This wasn't going well. JC's chances of being himself again looked to be flying out the window with every passing second.

"Oh c'mon guys, what's the harm in it?" said Joey. "We've been dancing around each other for months, for I'm not even sure what reason. So what if this is all because of some Freaky Friday shit? We were all much closer when we knew we could dog pile on each other."

"This is a little more than a dog pile, Joey," stated Justin. No one was fleeing the room yet, that was good. JC was still worried though. Kevin looked as concerned as he was. Someone needed to break the tension.

"Dog pile!" shouted Nick suddenly, jumping onto Chris' back and taking him down to the floor. Kevin smirked, then whipped off his shirt and jumped on top of Nick. Brian smiled and shook his head at JC. This was going to work. JC felt a sock hit the back of his head before he thought any deeper.

JC took off his shirt and threw it at Lance. Lance took off his other sock, throwing it across the room at Howie. An all out clothes war began, socks and shirts flying everywhere, people aiming for each other's face and chest. Justin stood off to the side until pants started appearing in the air, whereupon he muttered "Oh, fuck it" and threw a shoe over his head towards the door. Everyone else was moving to the floor, joining in the dog pile.

JC felt himself getting turned on watching everyone strip down. He felt whoever was on top of him getting excited too. JC then felt extra weight press down on his back. "Hi everyone," said Justin, a grin evident in his voice. This was going a lot better than JC had anticipated. Hell, this was going to be fun.

JC licked the earlobe of the person next to him, which happened to be Lance. The person behind him reached around to grope his chest. JC continued licking on Lance's earlobe, until Lance turned his head to kiss JC on the lips. JC rolled towards Lance, and Justin followed, rolling off of whoever was behind JC. JC felt Justin grab his ass. "Kevin's got a nice ass," Justin whispered in his ear. JC giggled.

"Hey uh," said Joey. "Anybody need some of this?" A bottle of lube appeared, hoisted in the air. At least someone thought ahead.

 

Kevin had his hands in Nick's hair and AJ's hands on his thighs. He saw the lube be produced and reached across the Backstreet/'N Sync divide that had somehow managed to form. "Who wants to use it first?" Kevin asked.

Brian took the bottle from him. "You're still in JC's body, no reason to freak out, right?" he asked.

"Um, yea," replied Kevin. He watched as Brian began unscrewing the bottle, but decided to turn his attention elsewhere. Howie was conveniently close enough, and Kevin moved his lips to his shoulder blade. Howie moaned softly, prompting Kevin to bite down a little. Nick's soft hair was also convenient, and he moved one hand back into it. He slowly sucked on Howie's shoulder, leaving subtle bite marks up to his neck.

Kevin heard the bottle of lube get tossed back to the 'N Sync bunch, with a "thanks" coming from Joey. It hadn't gotten into his hands, which made him wonder slightly what the rest of his group intended on doing.

He didn't have to wait long. Kevin felt AJ's hands move up from his thighs and onto his back. "Don't be surprised Kev," AJ whispered from behind. Kevin was about to ask by what when he felt AJ's slick cock penetrate his ass. "Oh," Kevin moaned in surprise. Nick grasped Kevin's arm and slithered down his body. "Physical connection, right Kevin?" Nick asked seductively. "Mm," was all Kevin could reply.

Kevin felt Nick's lips suddenly touch his dick and grasped down into Nick's scalp. Moving his lips to the side of Howie's neck, Kevin caught a glimpse of Brian making out with Howie, which was way hotter than he'd imagined. He felt Brian's hand move into his hair, Howie's hand wrap tightly around his arm, and suddenly there were so many hands on his body that he started losing track of who each belonged to.

AJ's cock moved slowly up his ass, while someone else's cock began brushing against his hip. Kevin moved his hand from Nick's hair to reach for it, and started jerking off whoever it was. Brian or Howie, he couldn't tell, especially since his attention kept being drawn back to Nick's mouth. It was all too much, too much at once, and Kevin didn't want it to stop. Oh God, why didn't they think of this before? Kevin's mind was spinning in circles trying to decide which body part to concentrate on. 'Yes, yes,' was his only coherent thought before it all faded to black.

 

JC ducked to avoid the bottle of lube that came flying across the room. Luckily, Joey caught it before it landed on the floor and left a sticky mess everywhere. JC felt Joey smack it into his chest. "Slick up Kevin. JC. Whoever the fuck you are," Joey said. JC applied the lube before Justin grabbed the bottle from him. He reached for Chris' waist. "Look I know-" he started.

"Just shut up and fuck me already, if that's what you're going for. Don't be a tease," said Chris, grabbing JC by the neck and kissing him hungrily. He slid his dick up Chris' ass just as Justin moved to do the same for him. "Oh God!" JC screamed from the barrage of sensation.

JC leaned forward to kiss Chris, but was pulled off to the side for a kiss from Joey. "Don't think I'm not getting in on this as well," Joey said, removing his lips from JC's and leaning to plant a kiss on Lance. He felt Joey's hand move across his chest, while Justin grasped him on the shoulders. Justin started pumping faster, prompting JC to move faster inside Chris. Lance's hand moved across his scalp and over the back of his neck. JC wasn't sure where to put his hands, and just reached for whatever bit of skin he could feel.

Justin stopped suddenly. "We'll continue this later. You know. Studio time," he whispered, before licking his neck. JC caught Justin move from his spot and shift closer to Chris, saying something about lost time while descending upon Chris' lips. He never imagined Justin would be this eager. JC pulled out, letting Chris and Justin do their thing.

He'd barely caught his breath before he heard Joey whisper "my turn." Now it was Joey's dick sliding into his ass, eliciting a low moan from JC. He'd miss having a deep voice; hearing it escape from his throat was sexy. "Need me to take care of something?" came another deep voice, Lance this time. Next thing he knew, Lance's tongue was on his shaft. JC gasped at the cool wetness of it. JC reached out to grab Lance, but got Chris' foot instead, and began massaging it forcefully. Justin and Chris removed their mouths from each other and ran their tongues up his arms, across his shoulders and on his cheeks. He lost it when Lance's tongue moved to his balls as Joey rocked into him harder. JC moaned, loudly this time, losing himself in the wonder of tongues and hands and bare skin. He felt a rush, then stars in his eyes, then climaxed in a warm hot sensation of pure orgasmic nothingness.

 

When JC regained consciousness, he felt AJ panting in his ear and Nick strewn across his legs. He hadn't been here earlier. He looked down to examine himself. "It worked!" he exclaimed.

"You mean we can't do it again?" Justin gasped.

"I'm moving over there if we do," said Kevin. "No offense to you guys, but I want to see what that feels like in my own body."

"Amen," agreed JC.

"Ugh damn, we have a show tonight, don't we?" groaned Howie.

"No one says we can't delay this until afterwards," suggested Brian. Grunts of assent came from everyone in the room. "I know this might be a bad time to ask this, but JC? You want to introduce us tonight? Since you've been a part of our group for a while."

"I'd be happy to," replied JC.

 

"Now here they are, the Backstreet Boys!" JC shouted into the crowd. JC watched as Kevin was able to join his own group up on stage for the first time in a month. JC almost missed it, being a part of the group. He knew things would be okay though, back in his own body. He'd make sure to write with them in the future, to work with them again musically someday.

The five guys ran offstage after their performance, to the backstage area where the five members of 'N Sync waited.

"Great show guys," JC said, shaking hands with them. The rest of 'N Sync clustered amongst the five performers, shaking hands and congratulating them as well.

"Hey Kevin," said Chris. "Thanks. I don't think any of us could've done this. Got us all together, I mean."

"Sure you could've," replied Kevin with a smile. "I just sped up the process is all. I'm glad to see it happen."

"Hey JC," Kevin turned to JC, giving him a hug. "Stay close with these guys, eh? You're still a group, even if you're not singing together anymore."

JC nodded, and smiled back. "You too. And good luck on your break. Just don't be afraid to go back when you get the itch again."

"Thanks," replied Kevin. "And hey, if this happens again.."

JC laughed, knowing exactly what Kevin was thinking. "I say we take preventative measures. Just in case."


End file.
